Alabama Lipfern Cheilanthes alabamensis

Myriopteris alabamensis, the Alabama lip fern, is a medium-sized fern of the southern United States and Mexico. The leaf is up to twice dissected into elliptical or long-triangular segments. Unlike many members of its genus, its leaves have only a few hairs on upper and lower surfaces, or lack them entirely. One of the cheilanthoid lip ferns, it was usually classified in the genus Cheilanthes as Cheilanthes alabamensis until 2013, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It typically grows in shade on limestone outcrops. It is named for the state of Alabama, where the type specimen was collected. Wikipedia →